Period Drama 'Viceroy's House' Looks At The Evils Of Colonialism

Beck It Like Beckham helmer Gurinder Chadha’s riveting, if sometimes clunky and rushed, political drama examines the evils of colonialism as seen in the last days of British rule in India under Lord Mountbatten (Hugh Bonneville).

While Mountbatten is negotiating for a peaceful handover (which eventually led to the partition of India and the birth of Pakistan), a forbidden romance unfolds between two members of his staff, a Muslim (Huma Qureshi) and Hindu (Manish Dayal).

Because Chadha packs a lot of events and exposition in under two hours, we wonder if the story would be better told as a Netflix mini-series a la The Crown. (***1/2)